An earlier version of this article mentioned that Dawud Warnsby had assisted in Michael Jackson’s conversion to Islam. He has denied that. This article has been amended to exclude that claim. In writing this essay, I was given information from sources I considered reliable that Michael had indeed become Muslim. Obviously, the part about Dawud Warnsby is not true. However, there have been many reports throughout the media concerning Michael becoming Muslim. Allah knows best as to their veracity.

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Imam Johari Malik had added a post on his blog with the following statement (an update on his blog states that he heard it on Wolf Blitzer’s Situation Room). However, we have been unable to find supporting evidence or independent confirmation:

Al-Hamdulillah, CNN reported that the Jackson family is meeting with an imam to make the funeral arrangements for the janazah (Muslim funeral prayer) for Michael Jackson.

Shaykh Yasir Qadhi has issued a clarification with regards to alleged statement made in his khutbah about MJ’s conversion. See this comment.

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The biggest news all over the world yesterday was the death of one of the most famous musical artists in recent history, Michael Jackson. As the hour long television specials, radio playlist tributes, and music video marathons already began on the same day, many Muslims are left wondering, “was Michael Jackson a Muslim?”

The short answer? It’s hard to say.

The long answer? Initially it began with rumors years back that he had joined the Nation of Islam. On top of that, Jermaine Jackson, his brother, is a known and confirmed Sunni Muslim, which added another ingredient into the mix.

Then in November 2008, various news sources reported that Michael Jackson had officially accepted Islam, as he had been interested in it since 2005 with the help of his brother Jermaine. Other news sources claimed that Muslim artists Dawud Wharnsby and Idris Phillips were also involved in his acceptance and that they were present when he took the shahadah (testimony of faith), and even that he was also meeting with singer Yusuf Islam, the former Cat Stevens.

But since then, not much else had been said about his acceptance of Islam. What’s more confusing is taking into account recent statements both Dawud Wharnsby and Yusuf Islam that not only were they not involved in the reported shahadah, neither of them has ever met the pop star.

Dawud: “For the record: Though our professional circles did cross-over slightly with various common professional acquaintances – I never had the honour or pleasure of meeting Micheal Jackson personally, nor did we ever correspond on matters of our professions, personal lives or faiths.”

Yusuf: “Contrary to persistent press rumours, I was not at any kind of conversion ceremony for Michael Jackson. Nor, I believe, was Dawud Wharnsby or any of the others mentioned in connection with the story. Granted, I was in Los Angeles at the time these rumours first appeared – but I was busy filming a video for a new song, Boots & Sand.”

Here in Chicago, after the congregation of the Isha prayer, the Imam of a local masjid mentioned that he called up Dr. Muzammil Siddiqui in California, former president of ISNA, in hopes of finding any confirmation on the day of Michael’s death about his acceptance of Islam. Nothing was set in stone. With speculation having come up in the aftermath of his death, this is why I wish to bring it up here.

So the question is this: With no real answer (yet) as to whether Michael Jackson truly was a Muslim or not, what should be our position in regards to his death?

The answer is simple. Regardless of what the real answer is, we should hope he died Muslim. And that’s not just because he’s a celebrity or because we may have grown up listening to his hits, but because we as Muslims want the salvation of all mankind.

Islam is the best and most perfect way of life for all of humanity, and we want all mankind to accept what we believe is the way to live mandated by God. And if that happens to be the most breakthrough artist in the history of pop music, then alhamdulillah, all praise be to God, may he be forgiven for all of his shortcomings.

If he’s not, then we leave his fate with his Creator as is, and hope more people like him are guided to accept Islam and help in spreading the message to the masses. And until we have some clearer answers to our questions, I feel this is the position we need to have as Muslims. We pray that Allah (SWT) guides more people to Islam.

In addition to the above, I wanted to debunk some YouTube videos that are claiming to be Michael Jackson’s “Islamic” songs after the late 2008 reports of his conversion to Islam. During that time, everyone began to spread the following video as being the work of Michael Jackson.

Although it may sound really close, it’s not Michael. It’s actually a Muslim brother named Irfan Makki, a Pakistani-born Canadian that recently joined Awakening Entertainment as Muslim artist. You can see him performing the song live at a masjid here:

Also, here’s the music video for an interesting Michael Jackson song called “They Don’t Care About Us,” on racism, oppression, and the injustices of the modern world’s system of justice. This is an A Cappella version, meaning there are no instruments so it’s easier to hear the lyrics. The video was directed by Spike Lee.

“For the record: Though our professional circles did cross-over slightly with various common professional acquaintances – I never had the honour or pleasure of meeting Micheal Jackson personally, nor did we ever correspond on matters of our professions, personal lives or faiths.”http://www.wharnsby.com/03_blog.html

Moslems are always trying to claim all kinds of people and their achievements as their own. They prey on the disenchanted and thus it may well be possible that MJ “converted”, but let’s face the music here and remember that he wrote his best music when he was still a free human being.

no it does not matter. he was a gift frm god..he inspired me to do so much..he is an angel.. i love michael not cuz he was fameous but cuz he was a real person who cared about his fans..he was the worlds greatest!!!! i love you michael jackson may you rest in peace..
Love forever..Me

well …. was he a Muslim or not matters to only those poeple who care for his hereafter. And May Allah (God) guide us all to the Right path, like Adam, Abraham (Ibrahim), Moses (Musa). Jesus (Isa), David (Dawood), and Mohammed (May Peace Be on all of them )

This article cites a source that says Dawud Wharnsby Ali counseled him to become a Muslim, and as we know from the link above, he says it is not true. Therefore, this is not proof. Please be more discerning about what you read on the Internet.

It matters because it matters to Allah, Our Lord, that while in this life we were to serve. If he is Muslim we can pray for him and ask Allah to forgive him of his sins. If he was not and died in a state of disbelief, we can only pray that Allah gives him the lightest punishment in the hellfire.

The Quran states in Surah: At-Tawbah 113*
It is not (proper) for the Prophet and those who believe to ask Allâh’s Forgiveness for the Mushrikûn (polytheists, idolaters, pagans, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allâh) even though they be of kin, after it has become clear to them that they are the dwellers of the Fire (because they died in a state of disbelief).

*For better understanding of this ayat if you do not have the tafsir of Ibn kathir you can read it online at http://www.tafsir.com

HADITH:
The person who will receive the least punishment among the people of Hell on the Day Resurrection will be a man, a smoldering ember will be placed under the arch of his foot. His brains will boil because of it.” [Sahih Al-Bukhari]

This person will think no one else is being punished more severely than himself, even though he will be the one receiving the lightest punishment [Sahih Muslim]

The reason Allah cares about what we believe is that He has created us and sustains us, and so He expects us to worship Him alone, and to follow the Religion that He has revealed. And the only religion acceptable in the Eyes of Allah is Islam.

And the religion we follow isn’t an accident of life. As human beings we have been given intelligence and the ability to think and to reason. So if you are genuinely concerned about finding the Truth, then your enquiries will lead you to it, by the Will of Allah. And there can only be one Truth.

I know, & that hadith makes me wanna cry again, I don’t want him to have the lightest punishment I want him to go to Jannah, I used to cry everytime I think that he might not be a muslim, don’t want to see him suffering in the after life/world too what he had here is bad enough.. =( Do you think if we prayed for him God might let him go to heaven??

Why are all these people so concerned about Michael Jackson?? There are so many good muslims in the world that have died. So many young muslim and non-muslim children.

We don’t need to go looking for celebrity muslims to pray for. Make dua for the forgiveness of all muslims in the world and get over the death of MJ. The number of inappropriate relationships he had and the non-islamic life he lead actually makes you love him? You should be glad if he died a muslim.. but seriously people, arent we a little off track here?

You don’t know his personal life any better than mass media or papparazzi. While I think media has been cruel to him, there is nothing to say he was some kind of exemplar. He was just a musician.. get over it people.

JUST A CELEBRITY!.. we dont need to claim him. He has done amazing since he became a muslim… as pointed out above his supposed best achievements were as a kafir..

A lot of people are asking the question, “does it really matter?” and it seems for two different reasons. The answer to both is yes it does matter, and here’s why.

1) Michael Jackson, a singer, entertainer, sinner, etc. Does it really matter if he was a Muslim?

Yes it does matter, because if he is indeed Muslim, then we can ask Allah to forgive him. All Muslims deserve the right to have us ask Allah to forgive them, simply because they are a member of our faith. That’s a part of brotherhood for our fellow Muslims, regardless of their lifetime actions and mistakes. Not to mention if he accepted Islam, all his past sins are wiped clean. So it does matter, because we want to help another human being in the afterlife.

2) Prayers are allowed for all of humanity regardless of their religious status. Does it really matter if he was a Muslim?

Yes it does matter, because we’re prohibited from asking for forgiveness in the Hellfire for those who are not Muslim. This is something which is well known in our Islamic belief, as the Prophet (S) was prohibited from asking for the forgiveness of his uncle, one of the greatest helpers of the Prophet and the Muslims in early Mecca. If he was not allowed to ask for the forgiveness of his uncle, one of the best non-Muslims ever, then the same applies to all others. So it does matter, and we hope he was Muslim like anyone else so we can ask for God’s mercy on him.

The Prophet (S) was not allowed to ask for forgiveness for His uncle’s refusal to accept Islam because (a) he was the Prophet (s) and his dua’aas to God were, well, how shall we say this…they carried a different weight. (b) Because he himself before his death acknowledged the truth of Islam and yet chose not to accept Islam… so I think that is why the Prophet (S) wasn’t allowed to “intercede” on his Uncle’s behalf.

Secondly… we are talking about a dude who most probably molested little kids…we do know that right???

Firstly the only thing we are allowed to pray for as far as the Kuffaar is guidance and only while they are alive. We are not allowed to pray for their forgiveness while they live or after they die. The Prophet (sal-allahu alaihi wa sallam) was prohibited from making dua not only for his uncle but for his own mother as well and similarly Ibrahim (alaihissalam) was reprimanded for making dua for his father.

but if he did indeed accept Islaam sincerely, then all his previous sins have been forgiven regardless and then he also gains the privilege of getting the dua of Muslims.

But since this is a doubtful matter we should consider that he is not Muslim because faith must be confirmed in action and speech, and unless we see any evidence of that he still has the status of being a kaafir

just because u dont see him performin it doesnt mean he is not, or can u swear by ALLAH dat he(mj) is not a muslim and that he died a kaffir? be careful ow u use the word kaffir, for its a strong word.

tell me, where is it written dat forgivness cant b asked for a kafir while he lives. remember u re not yet a dweller of hell while u re still alive. the heart of a man is between the two fingers of ALLAH, he can turn it in which ever way he seem suit.

so far ur comment\ advice was the best and the most important advice to all those who were contampleting if he was a MUSLIM or not. as a musilim u have to be recognised either by the way u dress, speech or act as it is said but micheal has non of these which am sorry to say it. anyway i wsih his family all the best and wish his soul will rest in peace since no one can jugde except our creator ALLAH(S.A.W). but guess wat i lyk ur words mehde.

Eventually when they bury him we’ll know if he was muslim or not.” -naeem

Not so fast. Many Muslims die every year and are buried as non-Muslims because they didnt make a will. Usually they have non-Muslim spouses. The local masjid requests the body, but if they are turned down, oh well. It’s important to make a will, people, even moreso if you married outside Islam!

Also, this article is fine, but I think providing that music video and lyrics was an unnecessary indulgement. Besides, that music video at the time of its release was being criticized for its anti-Jewish slur “kike me, jew me….etc.” As Muslims I think the last thing we should do is appear to endorse even more of that.

guys chill. muslim or not he has affected millions of people. if his faith causes his fans to ponder about their own faith, even if for a if only for a moment, then yes, it is a big deal.

it also tells us that hidaya from allah can come to anyone, no matter how engrossed they are in the dunya. it’s our job to spread the message. i can’t begin to tell you the people i know that became muslim. you don’t even have to look far – look at the sahaba. from the depth of the worst people in society to being promised paradise.

it’s also a reminder that everything ends one day. even if you have a huge neverland ranch, loved by millions and have the worlds riches, you will go one day. every soul shall taste death.

so for us – we should pray allah forgives him and makes it easy for him in the grave if he was muslim.

Yes, it’s good he reverted to islam. Now nobody can says islam is not tolerant : no other religion can accept a black man that denies his colour, that uses make-up like a woman and prefers sex with young boys….

Your sarcasm aside… its true, only if you are a Muslim is your repentance acceptable to Allaah, you can scream and beg for forgiveness in other religions but it’ll mean jack squat. So yeah, even the most vilest sinners can be forgiven by The All-Merciful, Oft-Forgiving when they choose His religion above the false ideologies of the misguided ones.

wow subhanAllah, I will say after reading the comments left here on this blog im quite dissapointed.

Can we take a moment and listen to what we are saying? SubhanAllah this man is dead—he has gone to meet his Lord–and I hope that he meets him as a muslim and not anything else. That being said what is the point of bringing up the things that he did/was accused of…and whats the point of calling names? What is that doing for us? Nothing…What is that doing for him? Nothing.

Also—whether or not HE was muslim–WE are muslim. With that being said there is a certain manner in which we discuss things and a manner in which we deal with others–especially other muslims. Rudeness and meanness are not found in the list of proper adab to have when dealing with others. We will be judged for our actions on the day of judgement and dont want the way we are talking to other muslims about the faith of a dead man to be the barrier between us and Al-Firdaws….

Alhamdullilaah. I was looking forward to this reply, whilst reading the rest. Subhanallaah..
Lets just hope Micheal died a muslim and all this criticism will not change HIS deeds in anyway..However they could do be sins upon YOU…

Rather than make dua for MJ himself, make dua for all the muslims.. therefore if he was muslim he will be included and if not you will be blessing all the muslims with your dua. May you be rewarded for doing so.

Secondly, doing this will not cause unnecessary fitnah on this excellent website.

Also doing this will not offend people who are thinking about all the definite muslims dying and suffering in the world, while one man is raising so much concern amongst the muslim community.

Thirdly, implementing the above two points there would be no need for a post such as ‘Did Michael Jackson Die As A Muslim?’.

I hope this helps to avoid fitnah.

PS: Answering the question in the title for anyone would be assuming you know what God has decided, I cannot see it being beneficial to anyone.

I gave a khutbah at a masjid yesterday, the second half of which was dedicated to the passing away of Michael Jackson. Before the rumors spread even more, let me clarify explicitly what I said:

– I mentioned that there are lessons to learn from his life, and from his death. This was a man who was handed the keys to this world, yet he failed to find happiness through them. He was always a troubled person, searching for happiness in (sometimes) eccentric ways. This shows that true happiness does not come about through this life.
– The unexpectedness of his death is also a lesson for all of us; we all have our appointed time as well.
– I said that there are plenty of signs, insha Allah, that he has accepted Islam. I have met Jermaine Jackson at the GPU conference (he’s not a ‘friend’ of mine because we’ve only met once) and he had said that Michael was interested in Islam.
– I also mentioned, based on Imam Zayd’s article and other sources, that there are trustworthy sources that indicate he had accepted Islam in LA, and we hope the best for him and pray that he did in fact accept Islam.

Such statements have a tendency to ‘grow’ as they leap from blog to blog and mouth to mouth, so I want to state very clearly that I have no direct and explicit knowledge of his state of Islam; we merely hope the best insha Allah, and there are may positive signs for this.

Lastly, and on a personal note, I thank Allah that He saved me from ever becoming addicted to music. However, growing up in the 80s, I could not save myself from its smoke even if Allah saved me from its fire! And of the very few people whose music actually impressed me and allowed me to see and feel why people are so attracted to music is MJ. I remember watching some of his videos as a kid and couldn’t help be impressed by his moves.

For those who have never tasted the sweetness of the Quran, I honestly cannot expect them to understand why music is haram. They have nothing else to compare it to. Music is a powerful medium that moves the body and stirs the soul (literally and metaphorically). It is only because we have the Quran that we can state that the way music does this is more detrimental in the long run, and only the Quran can move you in a pure and dignified manner.

A dear friend, Shaykh Abu Eesa, wrote something about this which is a must read on the subject:

But then you start reading the reports (beyond the daily mail) and you start thinking…what the heck is wrong with me?

I then realized 2 things.

1. I now hate music and therefore anything associated with music gets my wrath

2. Michael Jackson was so key in my youth. I used to listen to his songs for hours and not just his pop stuff.
It was his songs that exemplified the same humanity we all share.
i.e. children of the world, it’s black or white.
It was a pseudo coping mechanism to respond to his loss with just hate. I don’t know if his death will sink it or not? But subhanAllah, if he died a Muslim then that makes me more than happy :)

It is too easy to hate on MJ and restate dirty rumors. Think of something else.

I think we’ve been focusing on the wrong thing. We really should be looking to capitalize on this current event for the sake of Allah to help spread awareness about Islam and to work towards debunking myths about Islam.

Al-Hamdu-lillah! Michael and Jermaine Jackson are Muslim, and are true brothers in Islam (along with being blood brothers). May Allah give Mikaeel (Michael) Jannah and a wife better than the wife in this worldly life!

One thing to note, Michael always wore his pants above the ankles! This is one of the Islamic dress codes for men! Whatever evil whispers from the Shaitan he had to deal with, Allah has allowed him to die as a Muslim, and Allah knows best. It is Allah that Guides mankind!

I was sad at his death, but also in a way, happy, because Insha’Allah the goodness that we saw from Michael was confirmed and vindicated with true imaan.

Michael made doing good, cool. (Man in the Mirror, We are the World, Beat It)

And I am happy because imagine insha’Allah if millions worldwide, news media all over the world, literally, will insha’Allah witness a janaazah, and millions around the world will take a look at a Islam, and take a look at the man/woman in the mirror and give Islam true consideration, and be guided by Allah’s Grace and permission of Allah, and actually accept it! Ameen!

Michael took the step, when someone does a good deed and others follow suit, insha’Allah that person gets rewarded. Imagine the reward we pray Michael gets, with all his millions of fans all over the world, because he surrendered to Allah and accepted Islam.

People must have forevision. When Umar RA accepted Islam, the Muslims were ecstatic, to say the least. Michael isn’t Umar, but he was arguably the most famous man in the contemporary world, and certainly was the most famous entertainer – easily in American history, and one of the most famous in the history of the planet as one person stated on TV.

confession is a christian concept. Muslims should hide their sins from each other so that Allaah may hide them on the Day of Judgment.

I can’t believe that you actually compared MJ’s conversion ( if there ever was one) to Umar ( radiallahu anhu). Umar was a person of great respectability and character even before he accepted Islaam.

Why are we so enamoured with the idea of celebrities accepting islam? Apart from probably Yusuf Islam I haven’t seen any other celebrity who has brought any significant change in his life as a Muslim. So how is it that this “celebrity” suddenly becomes an asset to us? The story of MJ’s conversion is about a year old, yet, we’ve seen pictures of him walking around in a burkha and retain his effeminate ways.

A person’s acceptance of islaam benefits him alone, and it only benefits the whole ummah when he is a proper reflection of a Muslim. Otherwise its no different and has no higher value than any normal person converting to Islaam. Infact if they keep upon the lifestyle even after accepting Islaam its even more of a deterrent and not.

I’m really glad to see this post (not so much for some unfortunate comments though) because that’s what I’ve been saying too. Even if MJ hadn’t openly declared Islam (hence the debate here), there’s enough reason to believe, coming from all these different sources that it wasn’t certainly a case of “no, he’s not!”.

There are too many people pointing fingers at his life, poking fun at him. Please let us not pass any judgements here now – we have only to lose in such a senseless *passtime*. Allah(swt)’s Mercies are limitless… we do not know that He may look at one good deed done by a person and make it a means of his entry into Jannah whereas we who point fingers at him (related to his life events) might end up losing all our deeds. This reminds me of the narration about a serial killer who had repented after killing 99 (and then 100 people) and how Allah(swt) had made the situation so that he died and the Angels of Mercy took him away.

May Allah accept our forgiveness for Michael (or Mikaaeel) Jackson and through His Mercy, let him enter Jannah! Aameen!

As a Christian, I find this forum to be most interesting and have enjoyed the commentary and dialogue forgiveness and MJ’s religion.

I would hope that whatever religion MJ died as, that the will of God be done and that his justice and mercy be served. As an imperfect human who hopes for forgiveness and mercy, I would hope that MJ now lives in a land of peace and freedom from worldliness and corruption. I hope he has peace.

Therefore, any sources that cite these two individuals as part of the process of MJ converting has to be thrown out.

It seems that for some of us, our faith is dependent on whether or not others are Muslim. We should all discipline ourselves so that our faith would be strong even if we were the only Muslim on earth, and not use celebrity conversions as crutches for our own identity.

With all due respect, Shahed, I don’t think this is a matter of crutches at all. Neither is it an issue of identity crises.

When any other soul accepts Islam, there is a natural sense of elation for Muslims, and there is no doubt that conversions themselves are ayah from Allah, signs of His great religion. Why else would one expect people to continue to turn to Islam when they are being blitzed everyday with Islamophobic messages? If that isn’t a miracle to appreciate and glow in, then I don’t know what is.

On this same path, when the convert is of higher and higher stature, then that ayah appears even more soothing. I think you’ll admit that if tomorrow, Sarkozy, the criminal, accepts Islam, we will feel a a great sense of joy. The Prophet (S) himself made dua’ for one of the two most influential figures of his time, Umar or Abu Jahl (correct me if I got the second name right), to accept Islam.

Thus, since the question here is not specific to MJ, as your comment was of general nature, I disagree with your conclusion, and see nothing wrong in feeling more excited and more happier with the convert’s “worldly status”. There is also no doubt that the more famous the personality, the more he/she will be an asset to the Ummah, and a source of dawah… consider Muhammad Ali and Yusuf Islam.

While I agree that we should not resort to deception to pacify our appetite for good news (all humans after all desire good news), like spreading news of the first moon-walkers hearing adhan (!), at the same, there is nothing wrong with inquiring minds hoping for a celebrity to be one of us. After all, what’s wrong for an ex-fan to hope, for instance, that MJ would be in Jannah with him?

I understand where you are coming from, but think about the logical extension of what you are saying – essentially, we should be more excited about a celebrity “higher stature” conversion than for the Muslim convert in poverty down the street, simply because they offer us something worldly (PR for Islam, financial resources, being “soothing” etc.). Human nature pushes us in this direction anyway – why help it along with this attitude?

As for what famous converts do for the ummah – I prefer to wait and see the fruits of their work before celebrating them prematurely. After all, our religion rewards people for the work that they do, not what people think they may do.

Our obsession with famous converts and what they could possibly do for us has to end. Let us focus our elation, praise, etc. for those Muslim converts who are out of the spotlight. I truly feel that is the more Islamic response.

If MIchael Jackson died as a Muslim and insha’Allah is given a proper Muslim burial, do you have any idea the daw’ah value that would be?

Dave Chappelle’s grandmother converted to Islam because she loved how Muslims are buried.

As a good friend of mine recently told me, daw’ah is all about relationships.
I can be telling you the haqq, but if you don’t like me why will you listen?

But if you are someone that is beloved like MJ and you see he died as a Muslim, then this helps build foundation for us to do daw’ah and also helps counter all the anti-Islamic daw’ah being spread these days.

At the same time, it is sad that we as Muslims are so obsessed with personalities and celebrities.
Who is your favorite shaykh?
Who is your favorite nasheed artist?
Who is your favorite qari?

A little much. We should love all Muslims and we should make du’a for the nameless old Muslim who died in some country we can’t pronounce and we should make du’a for those famous Muslims who died.

Bro Amad, thank you for your post. It swayed my opinion on the matter.

We really have some wise people on MM, masha-Allah! Dr. Ali Shehata’s (sp?) article, for example, swayed me on the issue of Obama’s speech, and you just swayed me on this MJ thing, as I also had the tendency to say “who cares if such-and-such celebrity is Muslim”.

Alhamdulillah you are moslem now,and you took syahadah before you die,Islam is a beautyful reliqion.our holly Quran is something what Allah says and everything is on Al-quran,from the first time this earth made,today and end of the world,everything happen now is already write on Al-Quran,even about palestine,do you know when does Allah write it?it’s way before all of us in this world,or even how this earth made,it’s on holly Quran even before telescope huble knows it,is any other holly can do that?write it and you will find the truth of every single things.ALLAHUAKBAR.

Thank you, Shahed for pointing out that both of Imam Zaid’s “sources” denied this (I am sure Imam Zaid was responding to things he has heard from reliable sources, but even our trusted friends can repeat rumors). It’s interesting to me that Muslim Matters is completely ignoring that and continuing with his “trusted sources” line at the top of the page.

An earlier version of this article mentioned that Dawud Warnsby had assisted in Michael Jackson’s conversion to Islam. He has denied that. This article has been amended to exclude that claim. In writing this essay, I was given information from sources I considered reliable that Michael had indeed become Muslim. Obviously, the part about Dawud Warnsby is not true.

As for what Imam Johari saw on CNN – apparently nobody else saw it. I find it extremely hard to believe that nobody else saw it. Again, if CNN did report that, it would be all over the Internet by now, and it is nowhere to be found. Nor is it on the CNN website.

I care very much that Muslims not look like fools to the rest of the world by parroting wishful thinking, and it bothers me that so few of us are trying to restrain this impulse.

updating posts is OK, but it is better to fact check before putting stuff up in the first place. muslim matters has high traffic, so things reported here go all over the place where you have no control of it. it’s embarrassing for everyone from Imam Zaid to MM to have to retract posts and articles because of factual errors, and I don’t want to see either of you in that position.

Regarding your post above – you don’t even know me, so please refrain from insults like that. It is not becoming of a Muslim.

If non-Muslims don’t respect us, how will they ever even consider becoming Muslim? Why would anyone be interested in Islam if you derisively call them “kuffar”? This isn’t da’wa, this is anti-da’wa that drives people to hate us.

If non-Muslims see us as emotional, childish, impulsive people climbing all over ourselves to claim MJ as a Muslim, even to the extent of perpetuating rumor and falsehood without checking, they will turn away from Muslims and Islam.

If, however, they see us as principled people who think before acting, and who treat non-Muslims with respect, then they will become closer to Muslims and Islam.

You keep acting your way, and I’ll keep acting my way, and let’s see which is better at softening hearts towards Muslims and bringing people closer to Islam.

There is nothing wrong with saying kuffar or non-Muslims- you only inferred your own interpretation of the term. The reality is you can’t stop people from saying things- whether he is or he isn’t, there is no point in going all-out over the blogging world trying to stop Muslims from saying he is Muslim, (you could harness that energy in more productive areas). Time will tell because information is somewhat scarce.

And look, if he isn’t Muslim- what do we lose?
Nothing.

We’re human- we make mistakes too. Do non-Muslims evaluate Islam on the accuracy of our blogs? Or our character and actions?

We don’t get our dignity from the non-Muslims (kuffar) by telling them he was a Muslim. We get our dignity from Allah. In fact, Islam is an honor. Banish the inferiority complex in you and just be proud to be a Muslim- whether MJ is Muslim, or not.

If you think about it, Allah saved MJ from the sins of performing those 50 concerts he was scheduled for. There was a lot of pressure put on him to make a comeback, or more importantly to get out of debt. Allahu Alam…

^ Great point, alhamdulilah for that, if he was Muslim that was a blessing all on its own!

Its as if all of these people are sinless and that Allah couldnt possible forgive MJ of his sins! Even if MJ did not die as a Muslim there are many lessons to be learned from his life. Examples for parents are his horrible childhood and others such as having money and fame are not the source of happiness but your eman.

I pray that he became Muslim, the only reason I keep thinking about his possible acceptance to Islam is that I truly want him to have a happy and peaceful akhira. As Muslims we should always pray the best for each other and the guidance of non muslims, its Allahs will weither he is going to be forgiven, it is he who is the most merciful and compassionate! Frankly if he became Muslim the money he raised for Africa alone and his intentions might get him into Janntul Firdous, and I pray we all meet in there!

As a reminder, wish the best for each other and pray for the guidance of others!

asalam walakium if he was a muslim then hamduliallah but being muslim dose not mean only accepting allahs religion you have to act upon it such as praying ect because without making pray scholars say it takes you out of the fall of islam so its not just the question of wether he was a muslim because anyone can say they are a muslim but if they dont act up on allahs comandments like prayer the most important thing that every believing muslim should do the they aint a muslim allah knows what his state was when he took his life inshallah he was a muslim and if he was may allah forgive his an enter him into paradise ameen

Alhamdulilah I’ve stopped listening to music, but my family were big MJ fans back in the day!

He was a really troubled person, and it seems he could find no peace in this dunya even with all of his fame and money. I read that he became Muslim a few months ago, and I became happy for him. I hope and pray that he died a Muslim, and insha’Allah i hope he finds the peace he was looking for in the grave and in the herafter.

Allah is the Most Merciful, who forgives ALL sins. so May Allah forgive his sins, shortcomings and faults, ameen

Let’s refrain our tongues from saying evil about the dead. Muslim or not, it doesn’t benefit us, and we could end up saying something that displeases Allah. There are two hadith that we should keep in mind, I dont have the source right now. But one of them is about a person who says something that he doesn’t see as a really big thing, but that word (statement) dipleases Allah and that person enters the hellfire because of it (and another enters jannah because of it). Another one is about a righteous person from the children of Isreal. There was a sinner that he knew (I believe he drank alcholol and commmited many other major sins). So this righteous person kept telling him to fear Allah, fear Allah repent and become a better person. The sinner would not listen to him, and one day he said you aren’t the one who is watching over me, or the who is in charge of reckoning. So the righteous person became mad and said ALLAH WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU. And so by this statement, which was displeasing to Allah, this sinner was forgiven and entered jannah, and the righteous person got all of his sins, and entered the hellfire. Because who is to say WHO ALLAH WILL FORGIVE?

I will search for the sources, as I do not want to make a lie against Rasoolalah SAW, these are both sound hadith, one of them i heard in a lecture.

JazaakAllah Khair MM, keep up the good work, I love your balanced and insightful posts!

How could it not help our Da’wah? Didn’t the likes of Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X help our Da’wah in America? When Cat Stevens embraced Islam didn’t his fans become curious as to what Islam was? Didn’t they go out of their way to learn more about the religion? When Malcolm X became Muslim his followers began to read more about Islam and learn about it. Eventually, most of them entered mainstream Islam because of his teachings.

If it is openly advertised that Michael Jackson died as a Muslim and he’s given a Janaza, won’t that be a means of millions (maybe even billions) of people all over the world to learn more about Islam?

Yes, It’s a small hunch I have….but you never know who or what Allah (SWT) can use for his deen.

[…] Imam Zaid Shakir has now amended his original article: An earlier version of this article mentioned that Dawud Warnsby had assisted in Michael Jackson’s conversion to Islam. He has denied that. This article has been amended to exclude that claim. In writing this essay, I was given information from sources I considered reliable that Michael had indeed become Muslim. Obviously, the part about Dawud Warnsby is not true. However, there have been many reports throughout the media concerning Michael becoming Muslim. Allah knows best as to their veracity. (Taken from Muslim Matters) […]

While it was the will of Allah (swt) that I was allowed to embrace Islam in the first place, I have to admit that my interest in the Deen originated out of a slightly selfish sentiment:

I wanted to be loved, accepted and forgiven for my sins and shortcomings. I wanted to find a place where I wouldn’t get kicked in the teeth for smiling and being a nice guy. Or, even if I did, my intentions would be good for something.

I thought that I could find answers as to what to do with my messed-up, stressed-up life. I thought I would find a place where I could use the talents and abilities Allah (swt) gave me to not only do good work, but also earn enough sustenance to provide for a wife.

I, too, grew up being entertained by Michael Jackson and now try my best to only listen to khutbas, Qur’an recitation, news and educational programs. May Allah (swt) accept his best intentions. However, I am only 8 years younger than he was and in the 3 years since my Shahada, I’m still looking for those answers.

I have patience, and struggle to keep up my prayers, fasting and zakat (what little I can do) with consistancy, but my intention is simply to remind our dear Imams to do more to guide us new reverts. On the giant caravan that is our Deen, when you don’t know where you fit in, it is easy to fall off.

At Hajj no one seems to fit in- there are just too many people…but somehow no one falls off. You would expect more accidents and disasters to happen…but they don’t. You won’t find it hard to stay on this caravan brother, because we only have a little more ways to go until we reach our Destination. :)

Hold steadfast to the Rope of Allah- trust in Him and ask Him for some righteous company.

Ameen, Brother. I will hold on to this Deen like “the most trustworthy hand-hold that will never break…” Even if I have to do it alone.

JazakAllahu khaira for your reply. I just pray that I will be ABLE to make Hajj someday. I know Islam doesn’t owe me a job or a college education, much less a wife or a ticket to Mecca. I just want to work and earn my sustenance in a halal way. Since taking Shahada, in prison, I have yet to get the life guidance (re: education, career and marriage) I was sure would come with the righteous company of the community of believers.

May Allah (swt) forgive me if I’m wrong, but I always thought that part of da’wah, besides teaching the basics of the Deen, was helping the new revert to become a productive part of his community, doing what he does best.

If Michael Jackson expressed interest but did not sufficiently embrace Islam before he died, could it not be said that his own righteous company (like his brother, Jermaine) could have done more to guide him on the Right Path?

Br. Nihal Khan, I think its more than a small hunch. Malcolm X may Allah be pleased with him, was known as a “crazy, extremist African American”. IF MJ did become Muslim, the only difference between him and Malcolm X RA is that Allah gave Malcolm X RA time to prove his love to Allah and dawah work in the United States. But did anyone then think, this dude name Malcolm would have this effect on the Ummah? Even after his trip to Hajj?

At the end of the day, no matter how hard we try to have non Muslims see Islam in a beautiful way their hearts are in Allahs hands. The UGLIEST most unIslamic thing a random Muslim does can spark something inside a non Muslims hearts. Yes, MJ might have seemed to have been a couple screws loose but its not us to judge him, and the fact that we have blogged about him for a couple days now means their is something going on and Allah could be telling us he is our brother in Islam and we need to make dua for him, just like any other Muslim who has passed on. Even if you dont believe that, stay silent and just wish the best, is there something wrong with that?

QUESTION: Could you just go over again what the next stage is for the family in terms of claiming the body? Can you just go over that again for me?

HARVEY: As far as the next of kin claiming the body?

All they simply have to do is select a private mortuary to handle the services. And then they the mortuary will present a document to us that is signed by the family. And, on the basis of that document, we will release the remains to them, and they will take it to their facility and prepare him for whatever funeral services the family has selected.

…

BLITZER: Does it sound like it was a thorough autopsy, Dr. Perper? Three hours he said it took place?

JOSHUA PERPER, FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: Yes. This sounds like a sufficient long for autopsy. Sure.

BLITZER: And do they have everything, Doctor? They’re ready to release the remains to a funeral home and begin a funeral service. They have everything they need now to conduct all the additional tests, whether toxicology test or pulmonary test or whatever. They have all that material. They don’t need the remains anymore.

It matters if he was Muslim for 1 good reason:
Millions idolised him. If it was revealed he was Muslim then these fans would look into Islam and see what the appeal is. This can help guide people to Islam. If it is revealed he was Muslim then we should prepare and get ready to cash in on this and get our dawah material ready.

This issue has been beaten to death! We should be capitalizing on the DAWAH benefits of this event NOW.

Worry less about arguing over whether he was a Muslim or whether he had a few screws loose. This will all be revealed to some extent in the coming days. If he was a Muslim, AlHamdulillah. If he was not, does that mean that we cannot use his death the the controversy to help spread the message of Islam?

Focusing on how we can capitalize on this event in the present. If Michael Jacskon died a Muslim or a Kaafir, it will have no effect on your deeds when you die!

If you use the controversy over his death to help open someone’s eyes to Islam…. It will be ongoing reward for you!!!!

salam ummat muhammad,
i died as muslim or not, should not be anyone’s business. as suhaib webb imam comments, see if your neighbour is a muslim or not, which is a priority over you. leave me alone in rest,

I find it quite ironic that the article claims Islam is the best way for humanity to live, but at the same time it implicates that all non-muslims are going straight to hell. You talk of non-muslim people as being all condemned, and then you wonder why most western people directly link Islam with terrorism. People from western countries can look to the miserable muslim world, the opression of women, violence in the name of God, discrimination and hate… and then make their own conclusions wether this is a good or bad way of living.

You are implying that Western people link Islam with terrorism since Muslims believe that the one who rejects Islam will go to hell-fire. Yet, this is a case of throwing stones from a glass house. The entire Western culture is based on the Judeo-Christian tradition. Christians believe that the one who does not accept Christ as his lord and savior will burn in hell. Should we then jump to the conclusion that Christians are terrorists?

As for demonizing the other, yes you can most certainly look at the “miserable Muslim world”, but understand that there are Muslims who look at the “miserable Western world” and see a country full of pornography, sexual indecency, broken families, lack of family values, lack of respect for elders (including parents), alcohol and other drugs, etc. They can also see how it is the “miserable Western world” which invades and occupies other lands, and kills millions of civilians with their fighter jets and bombs.

For the record, I do not agree with either side demonizing the other in such a way. Rather, I think that all this is a result of people not knowing history. Had you studied history, you would have known that the Muslim world was not “miserable” until the West colonized it. I also disagree with Muslims in the East failing to see the good in the West, in spite of what values we disagree with them on.

Having said all that, you are incorrect to say that Muslims believe that all Non-Muslims will go to hell. Rather, we believe that a group of Non-Muslims in this worldly life–namely “Ahl al-Fatrah”–may enter Heaven. This a lengthy topic, but suffice to say, the Islamic view is actually more lenient towards non-believers than the Christian view towards non-Christians.

There is diversity in Christianity, too. Not all christians believe that non-Chrisitans will go to hell!. And another shocking revelation…not all Chrisitans believe in the trinity. There are entire groups that believe that Jesus was lesser than God and not God himself.

So, in other words…the entire world is a diverse place with many different opinions and ways of thinking.

First of all, I think it is very important to know either way whether MJ was Muslim or not once and for all. These false rumors about Yusuf Islam / Dawoud Warnsby, and also putting songs done by Zain Bhikha and Ifran Makki on You Tube and claiming that they were sung by Michael Jackson is both disrespectful of the true artist, and it shows the eagerness of Muslims to claim something that may not be true. It makes us as Muslims look ridiculous in front of others when we tell them that MJ is Muslim and in fact we find out he is not.

If truly the King of Pop became Muslim, then the Western Media will need to mention that. Imagine all the fans who will be affected by the fact that he is a Muslim and may decide to research and become Muslim themselves because of MJ’s conversion, especially now that he’s on the news and radio almost daily. I personally don’t get how this would not be a BIG DEAL!!!

Second of all, I am APPALLED that Muslims would say something like only Muslims will go to heaven, when in fact Allah has promised IN THE QURAN reward and paradise to all those who are righteous and do good deeds. Please refer to Surah Baqarah (Chapter 2; verse 62) “Those who believe in the Quran, and those who follow the Jewish scripture, and the Christians and the Sabians, any who believe in One God and the Last Day, and work righteousness, Shall have their reward with their Lord; on them Shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.

“…and nearest among them in love to the believers will you find those who say, ‘We are Christians,’ because amongst these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant” (5:82).

“O you who believe! Be helpers of God — as Jesus the son of Mary said to the Disciples, ‘Who will be my helpers in (the work of) God?’ Said the disciples, ‘We are God’s helpers!’ Then a portion of the Children of Israel believed, and a portion disbelieved. But We gave power to those who believed, against their enemies, and they became the ones that prevailed” (61:14).

There are still even in today’s society many “people of the book” who follow the spirit of Christianity and Judaism and follow the examples of Moses and Jesus (peace be upon them). God will not disparage their good works.

Prophet Muhammad (saw) also said that Judaism is broken up into 71 sects, one will go to heaven because they are on the true path. Christianity is broken up into 72 sects, and only one will go to heaven because they are following the true path. And Islam is broken up to 73 sects, and only one will go to heaven because it’s on the true path.

Let’s not be so arrogant to think that just because we declare Shahada, that we are saved from hellfire. May Allah forgive all of us and always guide us to the straight path. We do not want to start saying that which Allah never said. We also don’t want to become “exclusive” to the Mercy of Allah as He has said His Mercy extends to everyone.

I hope those Christians and Jews who read the above comments will also read this one so that they are not left with the false impression of Islam. Allah has created or “allowed” the different religions to spring up so that we will compete with each other in doing good. Yet, all we do is compete with each other in arguing who is “better”. Allah has said, none of you are better except those who are more righteous in behavior.

May God’s Mercy, Peace and Help be upon MJ (who I hope has accepted Islam before his death) and to all those who are suffering at the hands of the oppressors.

The Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) also said: “By the One in Whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, no one among this nation, Jew or Christian, hears of me then dies not believing in that with which I was sent, but he will be one of the people of the Fire.” Narrated by Muslim (153).

And the Qur’an says quite unequivocally: “So whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it shall not be accepted from him, and he shall be of the losers in the Hereafter.”

Without a doubt, Islam teaches that the only non-Muslims who might not enter the hellfire are those who either did not receive the message of Islam (or received a very distorted version of it) or lacked the capabilities to comprehend it (due to perhaps insanity or having died before reaching adulthood).

On the subject of (if christians and jews are saved) a friend sent me few months ago scholarly essay by his shaykh (Nuh keller) entitled “The Qur’anic Promise to Jews and Christians”. I am not sure where to find it in the Net, but if you are interested please email me and I wil send it to you. His conclusion is the same as Shaykh YQ.

why are they not burying him yet? why does the media fail to address his conversion or even mention his religion? why is jermaine jackson no longer the family spokesman after he mentioned Allah during the first press conference?

Brothers and Sisters, please, don’t be so naive! Only source that MJ converted is trash TABLOID. Are you really think that rumors could be reliable source?

I’m ashamed of such Muslims who don’t check news before spreading them. We look so ridiculous with such stupid behavior.

Jermaine is Muslim and mentioned Allah only because of that, as a sign of fear and sorrow because MIchael’s destiny.

If Muslims of first generation were so careless about non reliable sources hadithes never would be passed to next generations.
“O People who Believe! If any miscreant brings you some tidings, verify it, lest you unknowingly cause suffering to some people, and then remain repenting for what you did. ” (Quran, 49:6)

I head and read that he will be taking to neverland and his body will be displayed in aglass casket for two days and then they will bury hiim. I will say shame on muslims leaders in america and around the world who allow their muslim brother’s body should be displayed as if he was like non living thing. Michael jackson ‘s mom said he will be buried well buried as what as Islamic or christianity???

What kinda Muslims we are that we are allowing those non believers to act like this. What kinda muslim leaders are in this world to let Michael Jackson our brother to be buried without Islamic funeral. If they allow him to be buried according to non Islamic funeral then truly Muslim leaders are cowards and shame on them. If someone thinks why I do I care well why not he is our muslim brother and why we should not care. Can look that way if a Muslim converts to christinity, christian will do anything to help him or her atleast they will give a try.

There is message for Michael Jackson ‘s mom if you are truly his mother and respect him then respect his new religion and allow him to be buried according to Islam. If you dont really care about your son then you will do what your mind tells you, think what will Michael Jackson wanted when he is dead as a muslilm. I will ask Muslims leaders around the world to claim his body and give him Islamic funeral. Brother Michael Jackson rest in peace and may Allah grant you jannahtul firdos (paradise) ameen.

mj was a good man sourtof i dont know but yes he was when he turn to muslim i dont know his muslim or not but he is i say. and he will be all after. i want to ask a questionthat how did mj died ‘was he killed by someone or he died because of heart attack i dont understand………

Please, people.. please stop wasting time on this issue. Even if he was Muslim, which has never been confirmed and until now is speculation at best, what is he remembered for? His Music! Music is a major sin and that’s how he is remembered. So if he became Muslim, repented, etc .then the matter is up to Allah but why are we glorifying him when his legacy is that of something Allah detests???

Here is the best response I’ve seen so far from any person of knowledge:

Sheikh Salih Al-Munajjid on Michael Jackson’s Death

Question: Asalamu alaykum. I feel sad about what some Muslims are saying […]
after the death of the singer Michael Jackson. Some people are praying
forAllah’s mercy on him…

Answer: Wa alaykum as-Salam wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu. Ok.. Look, this
is one of the ways Allah tests His slaves. The death of Michael Jackson is a
test for people. A trial. “Indeed we tried Sulaiman…”

Are we greater than him so that we will not be tested? If Allah tried the
Prophets, will he not test normal people? So.. what is the test? This is
it.. “So that He can see what they will do.” What will they say?

This person.. it is said that he accepted Islam… and that his brother
accepted Islam… and that he invited him to Islam… and so he accepted.. and
that he was going to live in Bahrain… and that he went there to live, blah
blah blah…

But has this been confirmed? Yes there were rumors. Strong rumors? Yes. Have
there been various sources for this? Yes, in this matter, this did occur.
But has this been confirmed? Allah knows best. Did the man really accept
Islam? Allah knows best. Did he remain a Muslim after he accepted Islam?
Allah knows best. His brother who accepted Islam, did he accept Sunni Islam,
or did he accept Ahbash, Qadiani or […]? Allah knows best.

The matter is that those who have… I mean there are some people, if one were
to come to them and say, “By Allah he accepted Islam!” Have you heard him
recite the Shahadah? You yourself.. have you heard him recite the Shahadah?
Have you heard from anyone who heard him? Is there anyone you trust that
heard him recite the Shahadah? “No.” Allah knows best! We cannot delve into
this topic. Maybe… But what is apparent? What is apparent? That the person
died in a state of blatant sin. At the very least, he died as a sinner.
Because by consensus, or by various reports, he sold about 100,000 tickets
worth 80 million dollars for his concert in London.. So he was still
sinning. They said that he wanted try to make a comeback after his setback
in singing.. and now.. Allah knows best. But the general ruling is that he
was a blatant sinner. The person continued this blatant sin. It has not been
confirmed to me personally that he repented from music, or that he stopped,
or that he rectified his affairs. Allah says… “Those who repent, rectify,
and clarify…” Has it been confirmed that he repented? No. This has not
been confirmed to me. Rather, the apparent fact is that he continued in his
state of blatant sin. Ok. Is he a sinning Muslim? Meaning that he accepted
Islam and continued to sing… because.. money! Money! Money! So.. Allah knows
best.

So the least we can say that what was apparent was that he was a sinner.
What is apparent and clear that he continued to sell tickets for the sin of
music.

But what is the general principle? The general principle is that he is an
infidel. It is his disbelief that is apparent. If it is confirmed that a
person accepts Islam, he can pray for his forgiveness and mercy. But for
those who it is not confirmed, we do not wash him, shroud him, nor do we
pray the funeral prayer for him. We do not pray for his forgiveness or
mercy.

Some people say that he changed the way Allah created him. Ok, maybe..
something which happens before.. ok for example, someone goes and changes
his color to white, do we say to him if he repents, “Go turn it black again”
? This will require operations, problems, etc. Its over. If he repents he
repents. Finished. We are finished. We don’t say, “Change your color back to
what it was,” or do this and that. Its over.

So the death of Michael Jackson is a trial for people. There are some people
who even passed out! The problem with these infidels is that once a person
dies, they start to bring out his songs, which increase the dead in their
torture in their graves. They do not have any mercy! Actually they think
that this is being loyal to him – to spread his heritage, ideology,
accomplishments, blah blah blah.

So what is our stance? All praise and thanks be to Allah, a singer has died.
This is a blessing. A person who was a trial for people, one they call, the
“King of Pop”. The King of Pop! Alhamdulillah… This King of Pop died, for us
this is good news. Even if he accepted Islam and died in a state of blatant
sin. A sinner such as this has died. Alhamdulillah. The King of Pop died.
Good! One of the leaders of music in the world left. He perished. The leader
of music perished… maybe he was the most famous… I don’t know if there was
anyone more famous than him. He may be the most famous. He perished! A
lesson for those who say, “O people, this person died, he was only 50.” He
perished! Did his wealth help him? No. Did his music help him? No. Did his
fame help him? No. Where is he now? In a lab, getting an autopsy! Getting an
autopsy! So that they can find out the reason for his death. Did he die from
drugs or something else, blah blah blah… Allah knows best. He had a heart
attack…blah blah blah. Its over.

Anyways, do we say he is in Hellfire? No. Do we say he is in Paradise? No.
Its over. His death is lesson. The least one can say is “O Allah give us a
good end. Alhamdulillah. We ask Allah to take us in a state of Iman. We ask
Allah to take us in a state of obedience. See how this one met his end? See
in what state he died? You know his death is a lesson.”

As for feeling sympathy… you know soon there will be many articles written.
I am sure that the secularists in the newspapers [in Saudi]… there will be
tons of things written about Michael Jackson. Some people will defend him,
others who sympathize… So soon, those who liked Michael Jackson will say,
“You know maybe he accepted Islam, why are you happy he died.” Soon will see
people sympathize. Those who follow their desires will start to sympathize
with him. Of course they will give examples. For example, they will bring
some people who have suffered a breakdown, people in streets who fell, some
who passed out.. blah blah blah. A leader from the leaders of evil has
perished for us is news which brings us joy. That’s it. As for his end, he
has a Lord who will judge him, we have not say in this. We do not delve into
this. We do not delve into this.

A leader from the leaders of evil has perished for us is news which brings us joy.

A typical heartless reply by Shaykh Salih al-Munajjid. Couldn’t he just wait for the funeral to see if he was buried as a Muslim by his family or not? I agree with the Shaykh that we shouldn’t jump to conclude that he was Muslim, nor should we be citing tabloid sources or going on hearsay. Instead, I myself have just decided to wait till the funeral, since his family would know if he converted to Islam or not!

Shaykh Munajjid is filled with joy over the death of a man who might be Muslim. In his entire fatwa he talks about how “we cannot delve into this topic” as to whether or not MJ converted to Islam…yet he concludes his fatwa by saying that it brings him joy that MJ died! Shouldn’t Shaykh Munajjid have waited until at least the funeral to know if he was a Muslim or not, lest the Shaykh take joy in the death of a fellow Muslim!

As for MJ arranging a concert…if he really did convert to Islam, then he would be a new Muslim, and might not have known the prohibitions. They say he converted in 2008. Do you know how many Muslims do not know the prohibitions to music? So how do you expect a new convert to Islam–who had major psychological issues and a super busy schedule–to know that music is haram?

I guess it just disgusts me how inappropriate the Shaykh is in his “joy” over MJ’s death; it’s crass and morbid. MJ did not declare war on Allah [swt] and His Messenger [s]; he was just a Non-Muslim who sung and dance, since there is nothing in their religion to forbid that.

The Prophet [s] stood up once when a funeral procession was passing by. When the Companions protested by saying it was the funeral of a Jew, the Prophet [s] said: “Is he not a human being?”

Anyways, it is because of fatwas like these that I no longer recommend Islam-qa to fellow Muslims, and direct them to Shaykh Salman al-Oudah’s site instead (www.IslamToday.com).

As for Shaykh Munajjid’s argument that we don’t know if he would be Sunni Muslim or not…well, Jermaine Jackson (his brother) is a Sunni Muslim, so one would assume that MJ would be too (if he had converted).

His brother who accepted Islam, did he accept Sunni Islam, or did he accept Ahbash, Qadiani or […]? Allah knows best.

Shaykh, I really think that you should research a matter before rejoicing at someone’s death…and before you condemn people for not researching a matter when you yourself rushed to a fatwa without researching the matter…Had you researched, you would have known that Jermaine Jackson is a Sunni Muslim.

Just to clarify, I respect the Shaykh and recognize the great good he has done. Perhaps I could have used softer language to voice my disagreement with him, but it really just seemed too morbid and crass to me. His website has a lot of good in it, but some fatawa on it are just heartless. (I have the same gripes against the Ask-Imam website.)

Agree… imported fatwas on contemporary issues of Muslims in the West as opposed to pure fiqhi issues, just don’t cut it… I wish the scholars would consult the people of knowledge in the West, even those junior to them in knowledge, to fully understand the situation. That would help make their fatwas more relevant and less “heartless” as you call it (didn’t say I agree with the “heartless” designation).

Where the heck did he condemn Jermaine here. You should get a grip and hold your horses before you open your mouth. He just said that he does not know that he is Sunni or not and thus he said Allah knows best. Now what is your gripe with that?

akhi, I think Sh. Munajjid was expressing happiness that a leader of music (evil, to use his words), who had not left his ways, is now gone, whether or not he was muslim. that was the point he was making in his article post-fajr q&a in his masjid in Saudi (see my other comment below).

think about it from his perspective: how many youth from the middle-east have been corrupted by the songs of mj and others. Think about it this way: If a center of lewdness, run by Muslims, was destroyed by Allah, wouldn’t many Muslims be happy about that? I think that is how the Shaykh (hafidhahullah) is viewing the matter…

And I am not agreeing with his stance (nor disagreeing), but simply making excuses for one of our esteemed ulama.

And J you should also know your worth. Speaking about the Ulema in such a tone is your own arrogant self. You insult students of knowledge and ulema online with impunity. May Allah hold you responsible for your words against the Ulema.

I would only says that Sheikh Salih Al-Munajjid should look inside himself he is not saint either look at the sins you commited or going to commit in your life. Brother Suhail is right I agree with him. I hate this sort of sheikh and I mean it.

DO YOU KNOW SHEIKHA THAT PROPHET PEACE BE UPON HIM SAID THAT :: THE FIRST PERSON WILL BE THROWN INTO HELL FIRE WILL BE IMAMS AND SHEIKHS THE LEARNED MEN. I AM TRULY SO HAPPY WHEN EVER THIS HADITH COMES ACROSS MY MIND.

If he didn’t had Islamic funeral then it is americans who dont want him to be buried according to islamic ways because they fear that half of his fans will become muslim.

-Edited. Disrespect and abuse of the people of knowledge, even in our disagreements, will not be allowed on this blog.

There is no need to address Sh. Muhammad Salih al-Munajjid (hafidhahullah) directly, as he did not himself comment on MM.

Let’s see here… you are willing to give many excuses to the possibly-maybe-Muslim Michael Jackson, yet, you let your tongue run viciously violent against a scholar of our deen, Sh. al-Munajjid, saying he “dont seems [sic] like a sheikh”, “is truly a shame for muslims and Islam”, is an “ignorance [sic] person”, and saying that you “hate” a shaykh like him, telling him to “get the hell out of here”, “go to hell” (while you gave MJ the benefit of the doubt about heaven), and referring to his comments as “bloody”.

Guard your tongue… I will give you the benefit of the doubt that you naively thought you were directly addressing Sh. al-Munajjid here at MM, so maybe you weren’t intentionally backbiting him. But even if you completely disagreed with Sh. al-Munajjid, there is a certain adab which is supposed to be displayed towards scholars.

There is a famous statement in Arabic with regard to backbiting the scholars of Islam:
“Lahm ul-‘ulamaa’i samm.”
“The flesh of the scholars is poison.”

well brother Ahmed Alfarsi he is just a sheikh not a saint or angel. if he himself dont know adab or respect then how come he expect from others to show him respect. First he should look at himself then point the his finger at someone else!!!! he is not a prophet or saint why do i care for him or respect for such sheikh who dont have respect for the dead wether a dead person is muslim or non muslim.

Beside if the sheikh didnt posted this message then who posted the message??? looolz

Alhamdulillah. Apparently, Sh. al-Munajjid’s (hafidhahullah) Q&A ‘article’ is not an article at all. According to the original source of this article, it was actually transcribed and translated from an answer to a question posed to him in his masjid (in Saudia) during his post-fajr dars.

So, don’t take it for more than it is. It was intended for the audience in his masjid in Saudi during his post-fajr dars. It simply was not an address to the Muslims of the West on how to react to the death of MJ. To take it as such would not be appropriate…

I for one am happy to stand up and say I have no objection to anything the shaikh has said, and can see the benefit which this answer contains even if others (due to their hatred for other people’s purity) cannot.

In addition, I do not agree that it is heartless. He said it because he CARES about protecting the religion and about the hereafter of those he is speaking to that are still ALIVE.

Salam dear Shaykh, I ask Allah to increase you and me in knowledge and wisdom.

If truly MJ was Muslim, then we should not bring out his faults , especially when he is not in this world to defend himself. Perhaps he was in ignorance that music is haram, just as many Muslims today do not know music is haram today. Most young Muslims think music is just haram in Ramadan, but permissible at other times except when entering the masjid. Being a teenager in college, I can tell from what I have experienced that the majority of Muslim youth in America, even some of the more religious ones that even have memorized the Quran, listen and even play music and songs. Should we rejoice if they die to?

Some Muslims follow a minority opinion that music that talks about “good things” is halal. Some of MJ’s music had some good words in them rather than vulgarity.

Perhaps MJ did not know music was haram, would you really start telling a new Muslim everything that is haram first when he can barely recite Al-Fatiha? Maybe once he knew, then maybe he would had ended his music career and introduced Islamic halal songs such as Yusuf Islam(Previously popular musician Cat Stevens).

Also music is not one of the major sins, rather from amongst the minor sins.

I have never commented on this site before but this post really amazed me and I couldn’t keep my fingers away from typing just a little…

Whether MJ became a Muslim or not will be completely apparent when he is buried. As Muslims we are supposed to be patient at ALL times. So let’s be patient and see what happens. Will they make a wanton display of his dead body and make it like a shrine for people to visit or will they bury him with a proper Janaazah? InshAllah we will all know the Truth in due time.

And I remind myself and all of you readers about the following two verses:
So whosoever does good equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it.
And whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it. [al-Zalzalah 99:7-8]

There is no denying who MJ was…a man who called the whole of humanity to “rannatish shaytaan” (the cry of Satan, i.e. music) and “lahwal hadeeth (idle talk which was also defined to be music by the Companions see Tafseer Ibn Katheer & Tabari)
He was a man who was obsessed in changing the way Allah had created him. I remember many people used to mock him with statements like – anything is possible in America…a land where a very poor black boy can grow up to be a very rich white woman!
He was a drug addict…someone addicted to pain killers is a drug addict too…it doesn’t always have to be E, LSD, Coke and Ganja! To the point that Allah caused his death as the people are saying due to these drugs!

At the sametime, IF…IF…he became Muslim…
There is a Hadeeth in Saheeh al-Bukhari in which it is stated that in one of the battles a Mushrik had accepted Islam and was ready to fight along side the Companions. Allah willed for him to be killed instantly and the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: it is as if I can see him being dipped into Jannah and he has never offered even a single raka’ah for Allah!

So exceptional cases are there (as long as someone sincerely made an attempt to follow Islam)…maybe he became Muslim and he didn’t know music was Haraam, yet…we have even “scholars” who don’t know that Music is Haraam just like there are “scholars” who say Riba/homosexuality/Muslimah marrying a non-muslim, etc are all Halaal too.

I remember Princess Diana was killed in the car crash. I was sick…simply sick and tired back then too because Muslims said “she was killed by the royal family because her boyfriend (dodi al fayad the egyptian multi-millionaire) was a muslim and she became muslim too”! Absurd claims! And Muslims were lighting up candles, singing, etc for her! If we think like that we might end up thinking, “oh wait fulan aw fulaana was probably Muslim because fulan aw fulaana had a Muslim friend”…and the conclusion would be – hardly anybody dies as a Non-Muslim

Allah will give MJ what he deserves regardless of what we say or don’t say. We all know what is the Fate of the one who dies upon Islam InshAllah and also we all know what is the Fate of those who die believing that Allah has a son…nothing we say or do will change Allah’s decision.
However what is more important for us is keeping control of what WE say and do. Even if MJ was Muslim for the past 20 yrs…honestly ask yourself…as a Muslim, is it allowed for us to react like this for anyone’s death??

Remember that the death of the Prophet sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was the greatest calamity for Muslims. Not the death of MJ. And also remember that regardless of how rich or how famous one may be…everyone will eventually die…
Leaving behind beneficial knowledge, righteous children, ongoing charity (as stated in Saheeh Muslim)…these are the things that benefit the dead (if he died as believer of course!). So let’s say MJ did die as a Muslim…do think what many Muslims are doing running around buying his CDs and listening to his songs and dancing to his beats…is this gonna benefit the living Muslims or MJ in anyway what so ever? Absolutely not.

So my dear brothers and sisters, being from Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaa’ah means that our Manhaj (methodology/approach) is to take the middle path in EVERYTHING bi idhnillah. And the balanced approach – we don’t know for sure what the truth is, we will find out when the burial takes place…but for now Allah has made it clear what is the fate of the believer and the disbeliver after death…that’s all we know – this way, we’re not dooming him to eternal Fire nor are we praising him as if he was some prophet!

As Muslims it’s very important we get busy in trying to prepare for Ramadaan which is less than 2 months away, InshAllah.
Many Muslims didn’t even know or didn’t even care when the likes of Dr.Saleh as-Saleh, Bakr Abu Zayd, ‘Abdul Ghaffar Hasan, al-Mubarakpuri…who were some of the elite students/scholars that died in the past 2-3 years…this is the sad reality of the Ummah…may Allah guide us all and forgive all Muslims who have passed away…

I was the one who posted the words of Shaykh al Munajjid… I live in America, and no I’m not HIM! Lol

Yes, thank you brother Ahmed al Farisi for clarifying, it was not on Islam-qa but rather after his regular dars after Fajr. Sorry for the confusion. It does make a difference to know that because of his tone.

@ Brother “J”: I don’t understand how this could have gone over your head. He is not rejoicing at the death of a Muslim. Because to his understanding and because we should only judge based on what is the overwhelmingly most likely scenario, and also because the rumors have not been confirmed and the shaykh knew that–because of all of this, he reasonably presumed that Michael Jackson did not die as Muslim. But at the same time he left it open and said, if he did become Muslim, then it’s between him and Allah now.

The point he was trying to make was: in his past he corrupted many people with his music, so we should be happy that this “legacy” is gone by his death. He is not rejoicing at the death of a (maybe) Muslim, but he is rejoicing (and so should we) at the fact that he was a leader of Music, and this has ended now.

I don’t understand how MJ being a Muslim would somehow benefit the Islamic world.

Not being a Muslim myself, the Muslims I most admire are quiet, reserved, kind, and prayerful. A person on a spiritual quest would be more attracted to someone quiet and unassuming living an ordinary life rather than a super-star (no matter how musically-talented).

I really like MJ and his music, and his human story is compelling and tragic, but I certainly can’t see why someone would convert just because a super-star happens to be a specific religion.

I wanted to send this to the author for them to verify before posting but couldn’t find any contact details. I received this email in my inbox yesterday:

Assalamualaikum everyone,

Back in Australia after the iERA tour in UK and have found some time to update everyone. In the last few days the most notable of things was when I landed in UK – I heard about Michael Jackson rahimahullah passing away. I remember asking Jermaine Jackson last year at the GPU conference if Michael had accepted Islam yet or not and he had told me that he was close to. I understand from Sh Yusuf Estes when I met him recently in UK that Michael did indeed accept Islam 2 months ago walhamdulillah whilst he was in Dubai and it was a publicized affair in UAE which didn’t receive much worldwide press. So may Allah forgive him and enter him into Jannah. Ameen.

There are two lessons in this for us. The first is reinforcement of that hadeeth wherein the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said in the hadeeth of asSaadiq Walmasdooq in AlBukhari: “Wallahi it may be that a person has done good deeds all his life and then there is nothing left between him and Jannah except for a handspan, then he acts by the actions of the people of Jahannam and so he enters it. And it may be that a person has done the deeds of the people of Jahannam all his life until there is nothing left between him and it except for a handspan and that which has been written overtakes him and he does the deeds of the people of Jannah and so he enters it.”

Do you know if Allah has created you to be from the people of Jannah or that of Jahannam? Wallahi this is a bewildering and perplexing question enough to make any believer quiver in fear. It is like the statement of Malik bin Deenar radiallahu anhu who used to stand the nights in prayer grabbing his beard saying: “O Allah I know that you have created a group for Jannah and another for Jahannam. O Allah I ask you – which group am I in?”

The group that we will be in is shown by our last deeds as the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said: “Verily actions are by their endings.” How many of us know what our last deed will be? Look at how Allah wanted good for Michael such that he gave him Islam and then saved him from the sins of the world tour that he was about to start in ignorance – by giving him death before it. It reminds me of that verse in Surah Yusuf: “And in the same way do we turn him away from the evil and fithly deeds. Indeed he is from our righteous slaves!”

I ask us all to earn the love of Allah and His good pleasure by seeking His forgiveness and mercy and worrying about our last deeds.

QUICK UPDATE

• The iERA tour in UK went very well walhamdulillah with thousands crowding the venues where ever the events were held and inshaAllah over two hundred thousand pounds raised to help iERA launch immediately. Congratulations to the teams on their success.

• It was great to meet up with mashaikh all over the world – Sh Hussein Ye, Sh Yahya Sequillo, Sh Umar Weston, Sh Yusuf Estes, Sh Bilal Philips and many others who attend the iERA events in UK. Wallahi when I sat amongst them all I felt like the odd man out. They are all converts to Islam whereas I am born into a Muslim family. Then it became clear to me something really striking – Allah the Great was replacing the Muslims that were born into Muslim families with these converts to do His work. When I looked around the panel I saw how these mashaikh were all avid duaat that spent their life striving and calling people to Islam. They were the ones Allah had replaced the typical Muslims with. The verse in the Quran in surah maa’idah verse 54 was ringing in my ears: “O you who believe! Whoever turns away from his religion, then soon will Allah bring forth a people that He loves and who love Him – merciful to the believers and strong with the disbelievers – struggling in the cause of Allah and not fearing the blame of those who blame.”

• Sh Waleed Abdul Hakeem’s mother has undergone surgery and is in a stable but critical condition. Please don’t forget her in your prayers.

Just pray for our Michael Jackson that he rest in peace. Leave the rest to Allah SWT. If he truly accepted and really accepted Islam InshAllah he will go to Jannah and may Allah SWT forgive his sins and may he find a peaceful life in hereafter ameen which he didn’t had in this life. Wait and for his funeral to see wether he died as muslim or not..Wasalaam

who cares. If he was muslim then its good for Him. but He wasnt doing good thing islamically. music of that kind is haram in Islam. Even yussuf Islam brother what you are doing now is not good thing, seems you went back to music. Its shaytaan. so plz brother repent to Allah and dont die while singing

As a christian, I confirm through your opinions what I already thought, I am surprised that some says if it matters if he was muslim, for that who say it, u r not respecting your religion, bc in every religion IT is important if a person share our beliefs. If u really believe that ur religion is gonna save u from the enemy when u die, then u will agree that it matters. Second, i dont know about ur religion, but i do know, that no human is perfect, and we, as humans cannot judge others for their sins,only we can spread our knowledge to make the people be aware for whats best for them..i am really surprised reading that he liked to have sex with kids, he denied his color, etc..who are you to judge anyone? Is so big your allah that you in your heart go against him judging people? That is so disgusting of all you, it doesn’t matter if the allegations are or not true..its incredible how u the muslims always assume you r superior of all the other humans..I respect everybody beliefs, even if its not the same as mine, what I dont tolerate and make me sick is the persons pointing at each others, let him rest in peace, if he really do what he was accused of, and u really believe in ur allah u must know for sure he is gonna be where he belongs to.

And for the one who said that ur religion is tolerant because no other religion accepts a person who dresses like a woman and have sex with kids, blah blah, i wanna know, it is really toleran to “accept him” because i dont see anybody accepting him, u r being hypocrites with those blinds that r reading ur comments and are happy of the “purity” of ur souls..what u do, the whole day as sinners and in the night go and pray forgiveness from your allah? Oh wow u r go fast to heaven with all that hypocressy in ur hearts..dont say u accept a person, if really are criticizing him..that is not accepting, that is trying to lie to yourselves and hoping to have all ur sins cleared..I hope not all muslims r like you because if not, then thats the worst impression a person with other beliefs like me can have..what a shame of all you.

Asalaam-alykum
my name is feras and i just wanted to say my story and how my life prospective twards the late and great Legend MJ.
when i first started hearing about mj i was around the age of 9 i used to actually like him and believe it or not he was actually the one who got me started with music
when i turned the age of 10 i had been hearing rumors tht people say were true tht mj used to (sorry for my language) rape little children, i am sorry to who ever i am offending but i did believe it
after tht day tht i had found out i started to look at mj differently but still really liked his music and besides tht rumor i still new and believed tht mj was THE legend
i am now the age pof 14 and i am so very very sad about the passing
i never really cared if he were muslim or not i will not say tht it is better tht he is muslim because to me we are all gods creation and we are all brothers and sisters in gods eyes and all i have to say for the legends mike…..allah yerhamak……may god rest your soul thank all of you for your time
we will all miss you mike and we will never forget you

Well as i expected Michael Jackson isnt a muslim, its now a fact that he didnt change his name to Mikeel. TMZ released his death Cert. where it clearly labels name as MICHAEL JOSEPH JACKSON. rumour killed.

Americans generally hate muslims. It would not be unusual if the family,etc. tried to claim otherwise. The type of ceremony brings up the doubt. You have got to be naive to think Americans are so honest and open minded.

It is such a disgrace and shameful act of some so called muslims glorying a pervert homosexual evil musician while some non-muslims speak the truth.

This is due to the fact that these by name-only muslims have adopted kaffir way of live and are turning to rebellion against Islamic Sharia and way of life. So Allah (SWT) has multiplied their misguideance and left them to humiliation by other nations. Trampling on the honour and dignity of muslims. These misguided muslims have reached the depth of inferiority complex due to boot-licking of the non-muslims, cultural icons and Govt leaders.

Those who are perverts and those wo glorify them will all end up in hellfire according to the laws of Allah (SWT) unless they repent soon.

how u know ali he was pervert did u actually see him molesting the boy did u heard with your own ears or have u seen it with your own eyes. well people can say same thing about you. look at your own sins before attacking others others, sooooooooooooo evil of uuuuuuuuuuuuuu !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why music is Haram and leads to all kinds of Haram behaviour that surely takes one to the the pit of Hell-Fire. Music is an instrument of Shaitan to distract mankind from a responsible life. Kaffirs have adopted it as part of their life and some brainless, slave idiots among muslims are following this tradition and trying to go down the same path to Hell.

See below the evil side-effects of music that corrupts morals.
——————–

Michael Jackson was secretly dating his children’s nanny, it has been claimed.

The romance between the ‘Thriller’ star – who died of a suspected cardiac arrest last week – and Ugandan-born Grace Rwaramba was reportedly an open secret among the singer’s staff and his three children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris Katherine, 11 and six-year-old Prince Michael II, even looked on her as their mother.

Ian Barkley – who was Michael’s personal photographer for three years – said: “Grace loved Michael and he loved her. The kids called her ‘Mom.’ ”

Last week the ‘Billie Jean’ star’s former head of security, Matt Fiddes, admitted his ex-employer had a secret lover, but refused to name her, saying only that the mystery woman was not famous.

However, another bodyguard – who refused to be named – told Britain’s Sunday Mirror newspaper: “Matt was referring to Grace. They were more like a married couple than employer and employee.

“Grace was the closest person to Michael and the kids. She will be broken-hearted. The children were always their joint priority and like any couple they’d row if they disagreed about how they were being brought up.

“But the difference between Grace and other women in Michael’s life was that she had absolutely no interest in fame. It was something she actively avoided and Michael was determined to keep her and their relationship out of the public gaze.

“The romance was well-known among staff but it was made very clear to them that this was not something that should become part of the public domain.”

Grace – who began working as the singer’s secretary in 1991 – was sacked and quickly reinstated several times by Michael during her stint as the children’s nanny, but was dismissed permanently in December and had quit America.

However, she returned to California last week and is expected to be among the chief mourners at the star’s funeral on Tuesday (07.07.09).

Despite the singer’s will naming his mother Katherine as guardian of his children, and the eldest two’s natural mother Debbie Rowe planning to stake a custody claim, Ian believes they should be in the care of Grace.

He added: “Though I love Michael’s mum Katherine, she is 79 and if she passes on, the best place for the kids to go would be to Grace. She really raised them. She was with them day in and day out. She really loved them and they adored her as they would a mother.”

The singer’s will also states close friend Diana Ross should become guardian to the children if Katherine dies.

In 2007, it was rumoured Michael and the nanny had secretly married but this was denied by Grace, who is still legally wed to her first husband Stacey Adair.

Meanwhile, pictures have been released showing the late singer, his former wife Debbie Rowe and their two children, which are expected to challenge claims she was just used a surrogate mother who had no contact with her kids.

The unnamed photographer commented: “People may think Debbie was an emotionally cold and uncaring woman to be able to walk away from her children.

“But if you saw her with them you’d realise there was much more to it than that,”

The mother of Michael’s youngest son, known as ‘Blanket’, is unknown. – Bang Showbiz

He is dead now. No one has the right to backbite about him, because in the end, it will only come to bite you in the back!

Khallas.

It’s now between him and Allah (swt), and He is the Ultimate Judge. It’s none of your business to determine his fate, or make degrading comments about him based on tabloids, AS IF you have known him personally all your life or have spoken to him. This is gheebat. Of a dead person!

aoa, well shame on those who talk bout the dead abusively. mr.ali u can accept da pedophile rumour as da truth whereas u CANNOT accept MJ being a muslim… clearly u r a pessimist… n besides a momin is nt da one who taunts, curses, etc others… luk ur self in da mirror 1st. as far as MJ’s burial is concerned… luk everybody except 4 jermaine n MJ, all of his family were jehovah’s witnesses… N i read it sumwhere dat his sibblings were more concerned bout showbiz den mJ… dey planned dis whole memorial juz 4 da sake of showbiz… how on earth do u think that they wud have given michael an islamic burial??? according to dem it wud have tarnished da remaining status of mj. and one thing more mj’s mum was specifically a v. strong believer of jehovah’s witnesses… she made a great fuss bout givin MJ a jehovah style funeral… in da end i wud like to request brother YASIR QADHI to plz sumhow, if he can, contact jermaine jackson and clear dis issue…please sir i will b really thankful! may Allah rest michael’s soul in peace! ameen!

Michael Jackson’s parents, it appears, will be the ones who decide Michael Jackson’s funeral arrangements.

It will not matter what Michael Jackson’s religion was – they will decide.

For example, if Michael was Muslim and they want to give him a Christian service, it will be a Christian service. That is the law.

In California, the right to control disposition of a person’s remains and make funeral arrangements is controlled by Health and Safety Code Section 7100. There is a pecking order of possible rightholders who can control funeral arrangements. This is the order:

1. If Michael Jackson left written instructions for his funeral services, and the means to pay for them, those directions may not be altered, changed, or otherwise amended in any material way.

At this time, it is not believed that Michael Jackson left such written instructions. The instructions would have to be in writing to be valid – not what he verbally told someone.

IMPORTANT: Any written instructions by Michael do NOT have to be in a will. They do not have to be dated. They do not have to be signed by him. This is a potential problem in California law that the legislature has refused to fix.

Michael Jackson did not leave any instructions in his will. The will is available here.

2. An agent under a power of attorney for health care who has the right and duty of disposition.

At this time it is not believed that Michael Jackson gave anyone a power of attorney with such rights.

This special type of power of attorney is not included in Michael Jackson’s will.

3. Spouse.

Michael was divorced and thus does not have a spouse recognized in California to decide his funeral arrangements.

4. Adult Children.

Michael Jackson’s children are all minors.

( i thought i shud share dis wid u guys, da dead has got no authority… as i said b4 , his mum is a strong jehovas witness… she wud neva have allowed an islamic burial 4 MJ… people plz stop… da dead had already had a miserable life… dun make his hereafter miserable 2… show ur selves as muslims… did our beloved Prophet(PBUH) eva talked ill (naudubillah) about da dead??? no matter wat race, colour, creed or religion???)

” i thought i shud share dis wid u guys, da dead has got no authority… as i said b4 , his mum is a strong jehovas witness… she wud neva have allowed an islamic burial 4 MJ… people plz stop… da dead had already had a miserable life… dun make his hereafter miserable 2… show ur selves as muslims… did our beloved Prophet(PBUH) eva talked ill (naudubillah) about da dead??? no matter wat race, colour, creed or religion???):”

That was really hard to understand. Regarding Jackson Wallahu Alam what was he on. In the end it does not affect muslims either way because even if he accepted Islam it did not benefit the Ummah and if he didn’t then it does not matter.

If he accepted Islam then it would be good for him if he didn’t then it would harm him. So in the end there is no real incentive to discuss this topic anymore.

brother sohail, his mission was to bring brotherhood, love, Compassion n peace round da globe n dis was wayyyy b4 he accepted islam… he holds da record 4 da most charitable personality… does not islam also teaches us dis? 2 love each other… to honour each others faith… to gve charity to the Underprivileged… 2 spread peace??? n tell u 1 thing… wen a person accepts islam, all his bad deeds r erased n all his gud deeds remain as dey were… i av a strong faith in my Allah dat He wud not have let dis man of such a sweet heart die as an unbeleiver. i pray to Allah dat may dis news of MJ acceptin islam b true… n may through dis more people wud b attracted to islam… i read it sumwhere dat a person started studing bout islam n den eventually accepted it, jus becuz he heard jermaine jackson say that MJ was under education( regardin islam) and there r chances that he may accept it… dis was year b4 MJ Accepted da deen-ul-haq.

As i said if he accepted Islam good for him if he didn’t then he is the one who has harm himself. What else you want me to say? Islam is not in need of Micheal Jackson but Micheal Jackson was in need of Islam.

I didn’t pass any judgement on him. All his good deeds if there are then Allah(SWT) is the Best of the judge so he will judge him according to what he was on.

And since there are so many conflicting stories about his conversion to Islam and on the apparent there was no indication about his conversion so i said Allah knows best.

May Allah shower his mercy and blessings on all the muslims dead or alive and forgive our shortcomings and relieve us from trials and tribulations.

May Allah allow us all to be from among those who are successful and those who earn His pleasure, ameen.

Brothers, lets not be excessive in the religion here. The people of ilm have said what they have said about the current issue and they have given their reasoning. Just because it may strike a cord with our emotions or feelings doesnt mean their views arent credible. From amongst the beautiful sunnah is the notion of condemning public sin and wrongdoing: once the sahaabah were burying a certain Muslim individual and they mentioned that he had such and such a bad quality in him and when the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam heard this he said “Indeed he was”.

This shows that condemning an act in public even if the man about whom it is said has died, is from the sunnah. So I think, resorting to insulting the shaykh is both wrong, weak and for the wrong reasons. This person is definately an open faasiq and we cannot assume this as not the case. The things he has done and what he is famous for is fitnah, fisq and it has polluted the entire earth. And to say this in a public sphere about anyone who does it in public is a sunnah. May Allah save us from music and its evils ameen.

We should always show a respect for the scholars and not speak of them in a bad way, some of the comments I have seen are eye opening, accusing the shaykh of “needing more research” as though he is ignorant, that he is not from the west so does not know how to deal with issues of the west, subhanAllah guys, east nor west, the aqaa’id and usool of the deen do not change and this is not an issue of masaaleh or mafaasid (weighing up harms and benefits), its to do with principles.

We dont see his Islam, we cant confirm it. We can always make the following dua: “If he is a muslim then Allah forgive him, but if he is a kaafir, then despised he is”.

The worrying thing for me is having to see the honour of scholars imposed on for the sake of a man known for evil and fasaad and this is a major sign for the lapse of knowledge and the increase of ignorance amongst us today. We love the scholars of the sunnah and hate evil, lets make this our priority.

I ask Allah to forgive us all and allow us all, and all the Muslims, to earn His Pleasure, His reward and the Increase, ameen ya Rabb al Aalameen.

[…] upon Michael Jackson’s death about whether he’s a Muslim or not; Muslim Matters has several posts on this topic. In the end, this is a lesson that we should learn what benefits us, and leave what […]

I just do not know why still people around the globe argue about the conversion of Michael Jackson to Islam. Some says it’s rumours and some said funny things about him but never the less religion is something that we could not play fun on it. It’s ok if he change from black to white, but if its pertaining of religion somebody have to make it true with evidence so that the soul will rest peacefully with his creator.

I think the best answer was all in the web, just the matter of time to compile the truth. And I never take rumours as statement if it’s was given by somebody who are responsible and dare to stand for justice. So I have done my investigation on his truly conversion to Islam. The reasons why he make it in secret maybe because he have no way to prove it as many of them scared he will influence many more to embarrassed Islam but after have done my investigation I strongly believe he did converted to Islam. Please feel free to Google and accept the truth.

Michael Jackson was not muslim.. FACT. End this crap.. It’s been proven by his family.. They were all interrogated before and after he died. Nothing But God And jesus were crept up. In 2006 He was considering Islam, But he was still learning the ins and outs when he died. Jermaine Asked allah to bless him since he was a muslim brother himslef !!!

We all are the creation of Almighty Allah and we are within the family of Allah, so we should have love for all and this is real Islam. we should not hate anyone rather we can pray for them so that they comes inside the Islam.
We all pray for Michael Jackson so that he is forgiven by Almighty Allah
Chowdhury Mohammad Moin
Barguna,Bangladesh.

I think Michael was a Muslim alhamdulillah. I believe in 2 ways for my research. In the first, I just want to write here that it concealed very much in the front Michaels family and the question: Did Michael Muslim before he died? matched only by Joe Jackson on Larry King show: I do not know! Then there is the Jermanies tour with Larry King. He answers that he gave Michael books to read, and so was the rest away sheared. Not just only that .. But when jermanie was on Larry King so it was run NOT live as it always does otherwise .. Why will not Jermanie with a straight answer yes or no?

I believe 100% that at Mash Allah Michael became Muslim alhamdulillah. Probably know Yusuf Islam on it, but he hides it with. Strange that Yusuf Islam has made a tribute song Thursday Mj .. think Michael did believe the confession and wanted it private. He asked those involved not to proceed with it, as I understand him, that he wanted his life in the media. Can also be that it is through Jermanie he found Islam. But I think not REALLY think you should be so quick dommen times but think several times before you say: Michael was not Muslim! For it is only Allah (swa) who knows, yet.

And perhaps we never will know 100% proof that Michael became a Muslim. But it is better that we count him as a brother in Islam than to see him as not a ..

Peace be with you all!

Then there was Michael on this Prayer ties with that also was in his bed to see these links:

I dont know weather he had accepted Islam or not, but I’m sure he was a good man ! and…. here is a quote from the quran:

[9.80] Ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them; even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will not forgive them; this is because they disbelieve in Allah and His Apostle, and Allah does not guide the transgressing people.

Just stumbled across this article after viewing the movie This Is It. I am appalled at the concept of debate as to what faith MJ had. I am a non-follower of Islam, and for that I’m sure you will all judge and condemn me, which is unfortunate for you. I forgive you for that however and I know that we all as humans will return home again soon. In the meantime I wish mankind would stop obsessing over beliefs and bickering over who is wrong or right. MJ was a great talent who gave nothing but love to the world. Take heed of MJs actions and deeds, as they were inspired by God, and God, whatever you believe him to be, is the father of all of us. There are many beautiful people living in our own time, sent by God, to serve as inspiration and lead by example. God changes and evolves, so should we. Peace to you all.

Hi All,
We All believe in Supreme God!
But it does matter was Michael Muslim or not.
I can explaine my position and I can accept the position of others…
I do love the idea of Michael converted to Islam,coz first I love Allah and I love Michael like I love other members of my family and sure I want and I pray for Allah make Michael`s soul rest in peace!

Couple months before his death i had a compassion from the holy spirit to pray for michael
i believe that god will let a christian know to pray for someone becuz either they are not saved
or in the wrong direction. I prayed that god send someone his way to tell him about jesus
and i heard that a long time friend andre the one that sings soon and very soon talk to michael
about jesus and the holy spirit and they sang together. I hope that he did ask god to forgive him
cuz god gives everyone a chance to get saved but it is all up to them. JESUS DIED ON THE CROSS
FOR OUR SINS AND ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS ASK FOR FORGIVENESS AND TURN AWAY FROM SIN. IM GOING TO PRAY FOR HIS FAMILY AND CHILDREN THAT THEY COME TO KNO JESUS CHRIST AS THEIR LORD AND SAVIOR.

Right then all im going 2 say is when it says he officially accepted islam i think it meant he excepted ther opinions but i dont think the bit about Michael Jackson becoming musluim is true because i am sure that it wouldve been confirmed etc.If any1 knows anything please let me know.

Man!
A lot of people here are great fanatics of your own race(Muslims) Come on! Be good sports?!??!! And there’s one particular comment saying “we are all creations of the almighty Allah…” <— hey, listen, don't ever say that!!! Everyone in the whole world have Many different beliefs, OK?!?!!! by some of y'all saying that means something bad is gonna happen and most important of all, y'all sound like complete crazed fanatics! Geez! Anyway, in my opinion "Michael Jackson is NOT A MUSLIM" why? Well, a year and few months have passed since the death of Michael Jackson and a book had been published about Michael Jackson, inside a 3 or 4 page story about the scene of the crime(where MJ died) which is in LA at a rented house. There's few pics of the actual scene and one of them shows, Michael's room. And on his bed where it shows investigators moving a pillow, THERE, right there on the bed, A CHRISTIAN PRAYER BEAD NECKLESS just laying there… Well, that's my reason why Michael did not convert! YES, he took interest in it because of his brother, Jermaine but he Never converted. That is all I have to say…. RIP MICHAEL JACKSON! you are forever loved!!!

From what I heard, Michael Jackson was not a Muslim. In fact 2 weeks before his death, friends of his cam to his house and preached to him about Christianity, where he later fully accepted Christ into his life (as he left the Jehovah Witness Church in 1987) .

But as myself being a Christian, i believe that we have no judgment on the matters of what Michael or anyone else does in their life, we only need to worry about ourselves in this matter. Only God can judge us, and he will.

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim
well, i wish it is true that My Michael Jackson had converted to Islam I really want to believe that. But still, there are many talking out there which cannot give me a true evidence. Allahua’lam. Michael deserves to get in Islam as his belief because of his generous, kindness, love to other people, caring to other people, his polite and good attitude, good manners, he even a “muslim” before i mean he had done many good things that islam has asked every Muslim to do such as infaq, love, caring every races including adore children, kindness, forgiveness, etc. Michael already had those things, but the thing he didn’t have done is Convert To Islam to complete all of it. May Allah had opened your heart to convert to Islam before you died and give you a please.
I love you Michael J. ALWAYS!!!!

May Allah grant Michael Jackson jannah including us .
Conversion of Michael to Islam is a great achievement to him from god.
We must stop criticising here and there coz if any soul is converted to Islam, Allah is more joyful at him
don’t also forget it’s in e Ahadith of sunnah of our prophet Muhammad (saw)
Narrated in saheeh Muslim #2747, and saheeh al-Bukhari #6309

May Allah grant Michael Jackson jannah including us .
Conversion of Michael to Islam is a great achievement to him from god.
We must stop criticising here and there Allah knows best if he’s a true Muslim or not , coz if any soul is converted to Islam, Allah is more joyful at him
don’t also forget it’s in e Ahadith of sunnah of our prophet Muhammad (saw)
Narrated in saheeh Muslim #2747, and saheeh al-Bukhari #6309

I don’t think we be able to figure out weather he was a muslim or not only Allah knows……the only thing that I am sure is that his lasts songs was not ghanna at all and listening to them is allowed for us